Project 365: Day 143 -- Our last day in Ireland...

Our last day in Ireland. While I am ready to be back in my own bed, with my own soft sheets, and see my Woofey (who's probably spitting mad at being left with the pet sitter!), I am sad to say goodbye to Ireland. It has rained most of the time we have been here, but that just added to it's flavor. The Irish people are incredibly friendly and hospitable. We have loved Ireland, and sincerely hope to return one day. In spite of the more than 800 miles we have driven this week, there is still more of the country to see, lol.

And here's the last little bit from County Kerry...this is the stretch of road from Kenmare to Killarney--the one that had my eyes closed and hanging on for dear life on the way here. Much of this road winds through Killarney National Park.

A beautiful little lake...

The breathtaking view from Lady's View of the Upper Lakes. Really, this photograph can't come close to doing this scene justice. It's hard to portray just how high up we are.

A mountain stream that feeds into the lakes.

The little church by the stream...

Now, a view of those lakes from eye level. Wrong time of day, photographically speaking, but my only chance. I can't even describe how peaceful and tranquil it was here.

And then we were joined by these guys...

Now can't you just see woodland faeries hiding in the trees? And maybe an Elfin princess?

Driving back towards Limerick, I noticed how much parts of Ireland look like parts of Tennessee...cattle, dilapidated fence and all.
We caught sight of the enormous windmills, too. The photograph can't begin to show the scale and enormous size of these things, which are obviously used for commercial wind power.

So on the way to Shannon is Bunratty Castle. We had time, so we stopped to check it out. Dang, they have created an entire medieval amusement park there. So tacky and touristy. The castle is literally just a few feet from the road, there are gifts shops and "authentic" pubs all around, and a medieval village. And they charge $15 euros per person to get inside the wall! We grabbed a few quick shots of the outside and left.

Just grabbed this shot from the moving car. No idea what the place is. Just like the composition and the architecture.

Our last B&B--just 5 minutes from Shannon International, since our flight is in the morning. It's clean, cozy, comfortable, and has a good shower.